Esme and the Great Renovation
by EllyLee-93
Summary: a small one shot about one of Esme's many renovations. Just to tide people over till I start posting the sequel to Nine Weddings But Ours.


**Esme**

and the

**GREAT RENOVATION**

**A/N: this is just a one shot to tide ya'll over till I start posting the sequel to Nine Weddings But Ours. I'll tell you the title, though. Snowed in And Howling- any guesses yet? I'm thinking about posting one shots between sequels, what do you think?**

**Disclaimer: I do not own anything about this! Stephinie Meyer and respective owners do, NOT ME! This is just my my interpretation of her story and characters.**

**"Blue or** marigold?" I asked, and my darling husband sighed.

"What difference does it make?" Carlisle, the poor dear, had been stuck helping me figure out paint colours for the last five hours. Of course, to him that was basically nothing, but still.

"Well, the marigold paint will bring out the flowers in the curtains, and the blue would accent the furniture."

"I thought you'd decided on pink couches!"

"Oh, don't be silly. I've completely changed the palette since then. Do try to keep up, sweet."

"Who could?" Carlisle asked, smiling. I knew he was playing. Still, he really should pay attention.

"Ma!" Emmett called, clomping down the stairs. I'd recruited him, Edward and Rose into helping me paint, and it seemed they'd taken to the task. Emmett was covered in paint from head to toe, which was most likely a result of a paint fight between Rose and Edward. Really would they ever get along? "We're done Rose's bedroom!"

"Which reminds me," Rose said, leaning over the stair railings, her blond waves shining in the light from the chandelier, even though half of it was painted blue. "Why can't be and Emmy be in the same room?"

"For appearance, dearest." Carlisle said, opening the paper and turning on the light beside him. "It would be odd to have a brother and sister at the ages of seventeen and eighteen to share a bed."

"Yeah Rose," Edward said, not bothering with the steps and jumping from the banister to the floor. "think of what the neighbors would think."

"I could care less about neighbors, and you know it." Rose stuck her tongue out at Edward, and he made a face.

"That attitude is exactly what made us move away from our last home." I said, shooting a look at Emmett. He looked to the floor, ashamed.

"Hey, I asked Carlisle for a doctors note saying I couldn't play sports."

"And I asked you if you really wanted to spend two years in a wheelchair." Carlisle defended. He was right.

"Anyways, we were gonna loose the game. I had to slam dunk it."

"It wasn't even a competition!" Carlisle added, and Emmett gave him a glance.

"And then you started getting scholarship offers." Edward added, going to the upright piano in the corner and opening the cover.

"And you, numbskull, accepted half of them for the football tickets." Rose declared, wrapping her arms around Emmett's back and kissing him sweetly on the cheek.

"Hey, football's football."

"You should of taken the baseball tickets!" Edward complained. "Football's just thugs tackling each other."

"Pity you couldn't have gotten Cricket, haven't played that in, lets see... five decades." Carlisle added, flipping the page of his newspaper.

"Never the mind, scholarships or games!" I cried out, and looked at the paint swatches on the wall.

"Rosalie, dear?" I asked.

"Yes mum?" Mum. Mum. God, I loved when she called me that.

"Which colour? Marigold or Blue?"

"I'm thinking... the Marigold. Maybe with blue pinstripes?"

"I like that idea."

"You do?"

"Yes. Now help me paint." Rose grumbled, Carlisle chuckled, Emmett decided to help paint, and Edward began a waltz on the piano.

It was sheer, chaotic bliss.

"Carlisle!" I called from my ladder. I was hanging a chandelier in the living room, and the house had a beautiful high, high, high ceiling. Emmett had helped me prop the ladder's legs up on crates and books, and I was still having to stand on the very top to reach the wiring. I hated being so short, but really, I was happy I had the strength I did.

Carlisle came in and looked worried.

"Hand me that screw driver, would you?" I begged, and Carlisle sighed. He climbed the ladder behind me carefully, and handed me the screwdriver before stepping down carefully.

"You know I hate you being up so high." Carlisle said, a few minutes later.

"Darling, it isn't that high."

"It's exactly twenty eight feet." He said, and I was surprised he had calculated it. I glanced at his face, and I saw how worried he was. It was heartwrenching, but I wanted to hang this chandelier now, so I could get the hydro started. "Which is a perfect third of your last fall."

"I haven't fallen." I said, as I wired the lighting.

"Yes. Well, technically, you jumped."

"Oh. That."

"You make it sound like such a small thing."

"It is, in the grand scale of things." I began screwing the lighting in, careful not to use too much of my special strength.

"You nearly died, dearest." Carlisle made it sound so urgent. It was fifty years ago, thirty years ago, what difference does it make?

"Yes. But if I hadn't fallen, and if you hadn't been working that night, I would not be here right now. That's what counts."

"I suppose you're right. But still, you could be..." He trailed off, either lost in thought or afriad of how I would react to his words.

"I could be what?"

"You could be married to some human man. You could have kids, and pets, and a normal life by now. And you wouldn't have to be standing twenty eight feet up in the air, because one of your sons would do it for you, or your human husband would actually hire an electriction to do it. Or-"

"Carlisle, love," I said, smiling slightly. "That's not a very nice alternitive."

"Why not?"

"Well, for starters, an electrition wouldn't come at twelve o'clock at night."

"You wouldn't have to be hanging the chandelier in the first place."

"True. And I wouldn't have a son, my baby died, remember?" I said, and the memory nearly brought tears to my eyes. The poor thing.

"You could have had more children."

"I suppose."

"And you'd have a normal husband." Carlisle was attempting to state plain facts, but I at least could hear the sorrow in his tone.

"I guess. Still, not a good alternitive."

"What then, would make you happy?" Carlisle asked. I was about to answer when I dropped my screwdriver, and leaned down to catch it mid fall.

My movement set me off balance, and I began to fall. As instinct, I screamed, but didn't hit the ground.

"You better not have done that on purpose." Carlisle intoned. He had managed to catch me, but the force of the fall and sent us toppling to the ground. "That would break my heart."

"I didn't." I smiled. "Thanks for catching me?"

"If I had've caught you the first time, it wouldn't have happened."

"True. I never did get to tell you which alternitive would be better, did I?"

"No, you didn't. But really, I think it's best I don't know."

"Shame! Don't worry, though. See, dear, in no other situation would I be happy. If my baby had've survived, I would have been stuck with that terrible drunk of a husband. He would have killed me anyways with beatings, or would have bred me to death. And I I hadn't have married him, I'd me a poor, babiless spinster. But regardless of that, in no other future would I have you with me. I can't have children, I can't have a family, but I can have you. And in the end, that's much better."

Carlisle smiled. "Yes, I have to agree. That is the best alternative." I kissed his cheek.

"Precisely. Which is why," I said, jumping to my feet and yanking him along. "You shouldn't worry about me hanging the light, and if you still do you can at least hold the ladder."

A few minutes later, Carlisle called up to me.

"You know what we need?"

"We need a better light bulb then this. Honestly, how is this suppost to illuminate the room?"

"No, no. Not at all related to light fixtures of any kind."

"Paint brushes? We are running low on them. Emmett keeps snapping them over Edward's head."

"No, sweet. We need a vacation."

"What?" I said, and jumped down from the ladder. Carlisle flinched when I did that, and I was mildly concerned. Still, I couldn't see what the big deal was. "Why?"

"There are two answers to that." Carlisle said, and pulled me into his arms. It was natural, being in his arms. As if I'd been there for eternity- and, quite frankly, I planned on being there forever. "The first would involve something about reputation and family and whatnot, all of which are complete lies. So, let's be honest. The other answer is that, quite frankly darling, I can't stand anything more about painting and wall paper and drywall and god forsaken lighting fixtures." I snorted and hit his chest, and Carlisle laughed.

"Really? Is that all you can say?" I spoke around giggles, but I knew he was serious.

"Yes! Truly, we need a vacation."

"To where? And what about Rose, or Edward? Or, god good, we can't leave Emmett here alone! That will not end well."

"Edward's fast enough to keep up with Emmett, and Rosalie is smart enough to keep him out of things."

"All Rose will do is make out with him, and Edward will go off to see a movie, or a play or something, and you know it."

"We'll only be gone for a week-" he saw the look on my face. "five days?" nope. "Four?" Really? "Come on! How 'bout three- last offer." I sighed and looked up at him.

"Do we really have to go?"

"Yes."

"No." I shook my head and began walking away to the kitchen. "No!"

"Dearest, please! I can honestly tell you I have know idea what the difference between indego and purple is! I'm lost when it comes to cutlery, and upholstery and the difference between red maple and white maple. But I can tell you that I know when you need a break."

"I don't need a break!"

"Yes, yes you do."

We ended the argument simply. Carlisle had the late shift at the hospital, and I just decided to paint the ceiling. I was slightly angry with him. I wanted to paint, and renovate, and he was saying I needed a break. I didn't. And being at a height was just the revenge I needed. Of course, I would never have gone up so high with him here, just because it would be cruel. But it was the perfect revenge as long as he wasn't there.

A few days later I came home from the hardware store, carting a good two hundred pounds of wood over my left shoulder, when Emmett came downstairs, looking as if he knew the punch line of a good joke.

"What's so funny?" I asked, ever suspicious. Emmett was the type to buy an elephant and try to hide it in the garage, or steal Edward's guitar. Anything was possible with Emmett.

"Nothing. Nothing at all. Want some help?" He took the lumber, carting it upstairs to the room I was working on. I was going to fix up a wall that had basically been chewed into nothing by rats and mice.

"Well, yeah, I guess." Rose flew down the stairs.

"Why are you running in the house with suitcases under each arm?" I asked. Something was up, I could tell.

"Oh. Um...Ah... Emmett and I are going on another holiday. Yeah. Right. Holiday." Rose nodded to herself, and Emmett followed cue. Then Rose went out the front door.

Carlisle came rushing in, still in his hospital uniform.

"Everything packed?"

"Yep." Rose came back in. "All her clothes are packed."

"Fabulous. Now, darling," he walked over to me, and smiling put his hands on my shoulders. "I'll apoligise later." and he picked me up in a fireman's carry, and ran towards the door.

"What are you doing!" I demanded, pounding on his back.

"you need a break."

I heard a scream of car wheels, and Edward jumped from the car, throwing my husband/kidnapper the keys.

"Gas in the tank?"

"To the brim, Carlisle."

"So you're in on this too?"

"Yes. Mom, hate to break it to you, but you do need a break."

"Sorry sweet." Carlisle threw me into the back seat, locking the door before I could get to his, and running to the drivers side. I managed to roll down the window.

"I DO NOT WANT TO GO!" I screamed out the window. "I WANT TO PAINT!"

"Mom, we know!" Rose called.

"It's for the best!" Edward added.

"I'll built the wall! Promise!" Emmett said, as if this would make me forgive them,

"I WANT TO RENOVATE!"

"Sweetheart, it's for the best." Carlisle entoned.

I didn't even move into the front seat till we'd been on the road for three hours.

"I am sorry," Carlisle said. I just crossed my arms and looked out the window. He sighed. "Esme, it's for the best." there was a five minute silence. "If it makes you feel better, I got you something. I knew you'd be mad, but we do owe a visit to Tanya and her sisters. Here," He reached int the glove box across from me, and pulled out a box with TIFFANY'S stamped across the front. He handed it to me, and I opened it. When I saw the necklace, I gasped in spite of myself. It was a string of pearls, perfectly formed and graduating to a good half inch radius at the center.

"I know it won't make up for anything, but still, it was for the best."

"Was not! And you know it!"

"Well, at least I got you talking." I groaned, and looked out the window again.

A few miles down the road Carlisle sighed and pulled over.

"Will you at least give me the curtosey of putting them on?"

"Maybe."

"Please?" I rolled my eyes. "Pretty please?"

"Fine." I wrapped the strand around my neck, and did up the clasp. "there. Happy?"

"They do set off your eyes."

"Really?" he smiled. He'd trapped me into talking. "Alright, so I like them. That doesn't mean your forgiven."

"I know. But at least I can do this-" he leaned over and kissed me. "Without getting slapped."

"Ha. Ha ha ha. Close call, darling." I said. "Now let's get this over with."

"Great." we started driving again.

"Tanya and her sisters have missed you. We might consider having them move in with us."

"Yeah right. Tanya goes after Edward like he's a chew toy."

"Dear, that's only to be expected."

"I suppose."

"So?"

"So?"

"Am I forgiven yet?"

"You know I can't stay mad at you. I love you. It's rather impossible."

"I love you too. Anyone can see that when you look at the cost of those pearls."

"Or the price of renovating."

"Another bill?"

"You bet. But, hey, would you love me if I was different?"


End file.
